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Nenia � I yeet my books back and forth � Campbell's Reviews > The Wicked + The Divine, Vol. 1: The Faust Act
The Wicked + The Divine, Vol. 1: The Faust Act
by
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Come for the art, stay for the LGBT+ fan-service. I honestly wasn't sure about what to expect with THE WICKED + THE DIVINE. Half my friends loved it, half my friends hated it. I'm in Team Loved It but I can definitely see why it isn't for everyone. It's messy, it's shallow, it's weird, it's violent, it's mean...
But it works.
X meets Y descriptions are so overdone, but this is literally like American Gods meets Jem and the Holograms. Every 90 years, the gods reincarnate as humans but then they only live two years before dying again. Why? Who knows. It's tragic. The end. And what better way for a god to be worshipped in the modern age than to play at being a pop star? One only needs look at footage from a Taylor Swift or BTS concert to see the quasi-religious mania.
Our biracial heroine, Laura, is fascinated by the gods. She starts out at a concert for the embodiment of Amaterasu, where she's spotted by Lucifer and given a VIP tour of the back, only to end up being witness to a murder that ends up landing her in a court where she witnesses another murder.
Lucifer gets blamed and Laura is determined to see her freed, but her interviews with the other gods-- with the help of a nosy and well-meaning trans reporter named Cassandra (uh oh)-- end up going... badly. Because the gods have basically become jaded as fuck and they don't really give a shit about what happens to Lucifer as long as she doesn't make trouble and spoiler their 2-year debauchery stint.
And that's... basically the plot.
This book reminded me of a theistic version of the Fables series, which is a lot like this, only with fairytale and folkloric characters. I definitely liked the music element and the outrageous costumes, especially since Lucifer looks like a female David Bowie. One of them dresses like Freddie Mercury, and Baal was dressed like a rapper. YG wore a red suit and chain a lot like his, actually.
I really enjoyed this book, especially since one of my own books has a trans character named Cassandra (only this one is an actual prophet)-- that little bit of random similarity made me smile. The diversity rep was amazing and the art was exquisite. I think the story is confusing but if you just go in with zero expectations and roll with the punches, it'll probably be more fun for you. This book is violent and sexual, though, so if that's an issue for you, you might want to steer clear.
I, however, quite enjoyed it.
4 to 4.5 stars
by
Nenia � I yeet my books back and forth � Campbell's review
bookshelves: lgbtqia-library, graphic-nouvelle, magic-and-sparkles-and-shit, kindle-unlimited, poc-interracial
Apr 27, 2020
bookshelves: lgbtqia-library, graphic-nouvelle, magic-and-sparkles-and-shit, kindle-unlimited, poc-interracial
|| || || ||
Come for the art, stay for the LGBT+ fan-service. I honestly wasn't sure about what to expect with THE WICKED + THE DIVINE. Half my friends loved it, half my friends hated it. I'm in Team Loved It but I can definitely see why it isn't for everyone. It's messy, it's shallow, it's weird, it's violent, it's mean...
But it works.
X meets Y descriptions are so overdone, but this is literally like American Gods meets Jem and the Holograms. Every 90 years, the gods reincarnate as humans but then they only live two years before dying again. Why? Who knows. It's tragic. The end. And what better way for a god to be worshipped in the modern age than to play at being a pop star? One only needs look at footage from a Taylor Swift or BTS concert to see the quasi-religious mania.
Our biracial heroine, Laura, is fascinated by the gods. She starts out at a concert for the embodiment of Amaterasu, where she's spotted by Lucifer and given a VIP tour of the back, only to end up being witness to a murder that ends up landing her in a court where she witnesses another murder.
Lucifer gets blamed and Laura is determined to see her freed, but her interviews with the other gods-- with the help of a nosy and well-meaning trans reporter named Cassandra (uh oh)-- end up going... badly. Because the gods have basically become jaded as fuck and they don't really give a shit about what happens to Lucifer as long as she doesn't make trouble and spoiler their 2-year debauchery stint.
And that's... basically the plot.
This book reminded me of a theistic version of the Fables series, which is a lot like this, only with fairytale and folkloric characters. I definitely liked the music element and the outrageous costumes, especially since Lucifer looks like a female David Bowie. One of them dresses like Freddie Mercury, and Baal was dressed like a rapper. YG wore a red suit and chain a lot like his, actually.
I really enjoyed this book, especially since one of my own books has a trans character named Cassandra (only this one is an actual prophet)-- that little bit of random similarity made me smile. The diversity rep was amazing and the art was exquisite. I think the story is confusing but if you just go in with zero expectations and roll with the punches, it'll probably be more fun for you. This book is violent and sexual, though, so if that's an issue for you, you might want to steer clear.
I, however, quite enjoyed it.
4 to 4.5 stars
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Reading Progress
April 27, 2020
–
Started Reading
April 27, 2020
– Shelved
April 27, 2020
– Shelved as:
lgbtqia-library
April 27, 2020
– Shelved as:
graphic-nouvelle
April 27, 2020
– Shelved as:
magic-and-sparkles-and-shit
April 27, 2020
– Shelved as:
kindle-unlimited
April 27, 2020
–
0.0%
"I've lost track of how many people have recommended this book to me. ANYWAY, I'm finally reading it, fellow garbage cans, because it's FREE if you have Kindle Unlimited (which I do).
Cue evil Lucifer style laughter"
page
0
Cue evil Lucifer style laughter"
April 27, 2020
–
19.0%
"I'm hard-pressed to say who is the more attractive Lucifer at this point. Tom Ellis's eyeliner-wearing leather jacketed bad boy personage or this savage Bowie lookalike of a lady motherfucker right here in a white leisure suit of "I woke up like this" bad-assery."
April 27, 2020
– Shelved as:
poc-interracial
April 27, 2020
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-10 of 10 (10 new)
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✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ (former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans)
(new)
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rated it 5 stars
Apr 28, 2020 02:35AM
Isn't the art amazing?
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It's the American Gods bit that intrigues me! I haven't seen the TV series yet (really should), but the David Bowie part? Yeah, I've heard all about that!
✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ (former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans) wrote: "Isn't the art amazing?"It really is!! I was so impressed.
Susie wrote: "It's the American Gods bit that intrigues me! I haven't seen the TV series yet (really should), but the David Bowie part? Yeah, I've heard all about that!"I went into this expecting cheese and ended up with... well, cheese. But it was spicy, delicious cheese. And the art is exquisite.
Awesome review, Nenia! So glad to see you really enjoyed this! :)
What I love about comics is that I feel that everyone’s reading experience will be so different. I didn’t like this but loved the art (and went ahead and read the entire series anyway 🤷♀�). I feel with book the length allows it more chances to grab you. Here it’s more visceral. Looking forward to your review on the next book.
Yun wrote: "Awesome review, Nenia! So glad to see you really enjoyed this! :)"Thank you so much, Yun!
SSShafiq wrote: "What I love about comics is that I feel that everyone’s reading experience will be so different. I didn’t like this but loved the art (and went ahead and read the entire series anyway 🤷♀�). I feel..."Same here! Even if my friends feel differently about a book, I still look forward to seeing why they felt the way they did
Yeah I liked the art and the general idea but I was super confused most of the time 😂 still want to read on, it somehow left an impression
Annie wrote: "Yeah I liked the art and the general idea but I was super confused most of the time 😂 still want to read on, it somehow left an impression"I was confused too LOL. But I just hung on for the ride and enjoyed the pretty colors.
